Category Archives: Hiking

Took this shot on the way down from Harney Peak in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The forests in the area were beautiful. They were full of huge, tall, full, green pine trees, but the forest floor was often open and shady. These forests are often described as looking exactly like the magical forests described in JRR Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. I now definately understand why. The whole area felt quiet and old… just like an ancient mystical wood should feel.

There were lots of exciting and dangerous looking mushrooms around, but this is the only picture of the fungi that turned out in focus. I think I need a macro lense.

On our second full day in the Black Hills of South Dakota, we got up early and hiked the 3 miles (4.8k) to Harney Peak, the highest point in South Dakota at 7,242 ft (2,207m). This makes it the highest peak east of the Rockies, all the way across the country. Yep, Mt. Washington is only a mear 6,288ft (1,917m).

The 6 mile round trip hike took the whole family about 5.5 hours to complete, but it was worth the trip. The deep forests of the Black Hills are beautiful, and the views from the lookout tower built on top of the peak were simply incredible. The shot below is from the base of the lookout tower, looking generally south.

Keep an eye out for the other hikers on the rock…. waaaay out on the tip. Should give a sence of scale for the photo. The site was amazing.

Back from a short break… I didn’t forget about you! I like you!

This is another shot from camping in Vedauwoo two weeks ago. I spent some time on it, but I’m still not sure I’m happy with it. I’d like to try some of this HDF stuff, but I haven’t spent the time to take the appropriate numbr of pictures of a scene yet.

We picked a campsite with a beautiful view of the main area last weekend. Unfortunately, it was also completely exposed to the fierce wind as it blasted over the plains at night. But the sunset was worth it.

I love taking long exposures on the Poudre River. This mountain stream runs from high up in the rockies to right down next to our house, and a long section of the river is designated “wild & scenic”. I think the whole thing is wild and scenic.